The electoral process reaches its crucial moment today. After months of campaigning, the time to attract attention and convince the population has ended. Peru goes to the polls.
The electoral process reaches its crucial moment today. After months of campaigning, the time to attract attention and convince the population has ended. Peru goes to the polls.
From this newspaper, the call is for a serious, informed and reflective vote, with an eye on past experiences that can help us separate the chaff from the wheat between the candidates, and another focus on the future that we can build in this five-year period with new authorities. The message is especially relevant for the two and a half million young people who will use their right to choose for the first time. They have not known first-hand the trajectory of those who today ask for their support in the ID card, nor do they have any memory of the disaster that some policies that are now promoted as magical solutions bequeathed us. Rather, your informed and responsible vote could tip the balance towards institutionality and progress. For them, the importance of these elections could not be greater: what is at stake is the viability of the country in which they are going to build their future. Peru cannot repeat the Castilian experience and the complicity of its allies.
The call to responsibility also goes to the candidates and their followers. Everything indicates that, as happened in 2021, today’s results could be especially close, and that going to the second round could be decided by a few votes. Parties have the right to raise observations or challenges whenever they believe it is appropriate, but without clear evidence of manipulations or bad practices, no candidate should denounce the legitimacy of the process in advance. From here we have also insisted on the need for parties to train and train representatives to defend the vote. Until just a week ago, no party had officially accredited these people. Let’s hope that today they are ready because their vigilant work is key to the legitimacy of the process.
Organizations such as the OAS, the European Union and the Carter Center will be part of the international electoral observation team to guarantee that the final score of the race faithfully reflects what was expressed at the polls. Other local organizations, such as the Transparency Civil Association, join the effort.
Today the country has the opportunity to choose again. And he must live with the decision of this day for the next five years. A responsible and thoughtful vote will be the best antidote to not regret it later.
